D/R DOWNLOAD 4.8
What’s Trending
01/ On Google
“National parks near me” and “best summer vacations for families” are both trending +120% as families plan trips for the upcoming season.
02/ With Media
Journalists this week expressed story interest in Mother’s Day vacations, tropical destinations, the combination of business and leisure travel, and more.
The New York Post hired Jeanette Settembre as a new Senior Features Travel Reporter.
03/ In The Zeitgeist
Singer Selena Gomez launched a new mental health platform called Wondermind which offers resources, daily content and tools – vetted by an expert committee of the world’s best psychiatrists – to improve mental health.
Heineken beer launched its first virtual beer in the metaverse as an ironic joke to emphasize the fact that all products are better experienced in real life – especially fresh beer. Heineken Silver is currently available in the immersive digital platform, Decentraland.
After several years of requests, Twitter is adding an edit button that will allow its users to edit their existing posts. The platform will begin testing the new feature over the next few months.
Industry Insights
In celebration of Earth Day 2022, VisitLEX teamed up with a creative agency to spotlight Elwood Hotel & Suites as “The World’s First Plant-Friendly Hotel,” offering a Gardener’s Premier Corner Room Package featuring an abundance of natural light and an array of add-ons for traveling plants.
To combat the recent surge in gas prices and continue to promote outdoor exploration, glamping company Under Canvas is helping travelers “fuel” adventure by offering $100 off stays at one of its ten national park locations.
Online payment company Willa recently launched an airline catered towards social media creators and influencers. Willa Air is now open for applications with its first flight transporting 12 influencers to Coachella, and future plans to fly influencers to New York City’s Fashion Week in September.
CitizenM, an Amsterdam-based hotel group, will begin testing out marketing in the metaverse. Citizen M bought a space in a game called The Sandbox, where they hope to meet potential clients and eventually raise money through NFTs.
Graduate Hotels Bloomington is letting Stranger Things fans immerse themselves in Hawkins by offering stays in an 80s-inspired Stranger Things suite featuring iconic decor, hidden clues and ‘The Upside Down Experience’ package.
Uber will begin offering flights, rail and hotel bookings on their UK app. Rail bookings are set to launch this summer, with flights later in the year, and hotel bookings in 2023.
Jamaica hosted more than 1.54 million tourists in 2021, the highest reported since pre-pandemic. Tourism officials estimate around 2.45 million in 2022.
This week, JetBlue airlines made an unsolicited $3.6 billion dollar offer to buy out Spirit Airlines. This offer comes after the original Spirit and Frontier planned merge, announced in February.
Best Practices
01/ The Good
New York City Mayor Eric Adams partnered with ad agencies to create a billboard campaign denouncing Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, offering an alternative: move up north. Placed in key locations throughout Florida, the ads, emphasizing New York City’s acceptance for the LGBTQ community, will run throughout April and May.
Covid-Related Updates
With the federal mask mandate for air travel set to expire on April 18, 60% of Americans reported that they aren’t ready for it to be lifted and would support an extension of the requirement, according to a survey conducted by The Harris Poll.
This week, places such as Grenada, Denmark and Canada eased COVID-19 entry requirements.
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